A movement to rename the Houston Street Viaduct connecting Downtown Dallas to Oak Cliff cleared a major step this month.
Dallas Cowboys and Civil Rights icon Pettis Norman died in 2025 and many people considered him a human bridge.
His widow, Ivette, spoke before the Dallas Plan Commission about his legacy including his work with four different U.S. Presidents.
"His most notable accomplishment was being tapped by Lyndon B. Johnson to fly to Washington and help bring peace among the rioters after Martin Luther King was killed," she said.
There is some opposition to the move.
First, the viaduct itself is such of a historic nature that changing its name could cause confusion.
On top of that, the future of the Houston and Jefferson Street viaducts is currently up in the air given the proposed redesign of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center construction project downtown.
The Dallas Plan Commission originally considered a study to deny the name change. That motion overwhelmingly failed.
The commission then moved to endorse the name change which passed. The consideration now goes to the Dallas City Council.
